Quantifying Airborne Spray Drift Using String Collectors
Se-yeon Lee,
Jinseon Park,
Lak-yeong Choi,
Kehinde Favour Daniel,
Se-woon Hong,
Hyun Ho Noh,
Seung-Hwa Yu
Affiliations
Se-yeon Lee
Department of Rural and Biosystems Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
Jinseon Park
Department of Rural and Biosystems Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
Lak-yeong Choi
Department of Rural and Biosystems Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
Kehinde Favour Daniel
Department of Rural and Biosystems Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
Se-woon Hong
Department of Rural and Biosystems Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
Hyun Ho Noh
Residual Agrochemical Assessment Division, National Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Rural Development Administration, Wanju 55365, Republic of Korea
Seung-Hwa Yu
Department of Agricultural Engineering, National Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Rural Development Administration, Jeonju 54875, Republic of Korea
Efficient collection of airborne spray is crucial to reduce environmental contamination and ensure effective pesticide application in agriculture. This study explored the efficacy of passive spray drift samplers, focusing on string collectors for capturing airborne spray droplets. String collectors were assessed in laboratory experiments using a spray drift tunnel. A notable average recovery rate of 82% was observed when string collectors were examined immediately after pesticide capture. Collection efficiency was found to increase with wind speed. Of all the string collectors, string #5, a yarn type, demonstrated consistent collection efficiency, meeting the criteria for passive samplers. This includes effective droplet capture at low wind speeds, a high recovery rate of 93.31%, and suitability for field experiments. Field evaluations further underlined the efficiency of string #5, showcasing its ability to capture spray drift across a wider area and varied heights with less effort and manpower compared to traditional nylon screens.
